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Yahoo
19-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Humanity's first influence on climate change could have come much earlier than previously thought
If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, BGR may receive an affiliate commission. We all know that humans are helping drive climate change. No, we aren't the only cause of the increasing global temperatures, but there's no question that we have had a serious impact over the years. Now, new research estimates that humanity's first influence on global climate change may have come much earlier than previously believed. By most accounts, it's believed that the human fingerprint on global warming really began when modern cars took off. However, our first misstep in the fight against climate change may have come far before the first modern cars roamed the streets. Instead, researchers believe the start of the industrial revolution may have been the tipping point. Today's Top Deals Best deals: Tech, laptops, TVs, and more sales Best Ring Video Doorbell deals Memorial Day security camera deals: Reolink's unbeatable sale has prices from $29.98 During that time, more factories sprouted up, leading to increased output of greenhouse gases. To dig a little deeper, the researchers believe that the first signs of human influence on climate change likely happened as early as 1885, just before the gas-powered car became a standard part of life. These findings are detailed in a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. However, it's extremely difficult to tell exactly when we first started to have a noticeable impact on the global climate. While we've done plenty to try to combat climate change in recent years, with a mission set to test a solar umbrella happening later this decade, there's still a long way to go if we truly hope to stop rising sea levels. While some scientists argue that we're far past the tipping point, others aren't sure. But one thing is clear: if we want to truly make a difference, we need to understand where we started to go wrong. Not only can that help us ascertain how much damage we've actually done, but it could help us find ways to go about living in a way that doesn't risk additional climate change pushes, without making us give up the modern luxuries we've come to depend on. One researcher says that had we kept track of the changes in the atmosphere back then like we do now, it's very likely we could have detected the signals of incoming climate change far before it became such a problem. Instead, we'll simply have to accept that the world is what it is now, and that human influence on climate change has been running rampant for centuries at this point. More Top Deals Amazon gift card deals, offers & coupons 2025: Get $2,000+ free See the
CNN
16-06-2025
- Science
- CNN
Fingerprint of human-caused global warming was likely detectable 140 years ago, far earlier than previously thought
The human fingerprint on global warming was likely evident in Earth's atmosphere far earlier than previously thought—even before the invention of modern cars, a new study says. Using a combination of scientific theory, modern observations and multiple, sophisticated computer models, researchers found a clear signal of human-caused climate change was likely discernible with high confidence as early as 1885, just before the advent of gas-powered cars but after the dawn of the industrial revolution. The findings, detailed in a paper published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, raise the likelihood that humanity has been remaking the planet's climate in a detectable way for longer than previously believed—and highlight the importance of tracking changes in the upper atmosphere. Scientists had begun to record surface temperature observations by the mid-19th century. The start date for a detectable human signal in surface temperatures has generally been thought to be in the early-to-mid-20th century, though other parts of the climate system showed signs of change at different times. For this study, the veteran climate researchers posed the question: With the observational tools of today, when is the earliest that the signs of human-caused climate change would have been detectable in the atmosphere? The study looked specifically at signals in the stratosphere – the second level of the atmosphere. Most weather occurs in the lowest level, the troposphere. While greenhouse gas emissions warm the lower atmosphere, they exert the opposite effect on the stratosphere, particularly its upper regions. Researchers used this knowledge to examine climate models looking back in time for signs of these effects. The findings surprised lead author Ben Santer and co-author Susan Solomon, who did not expect to find such a clear human signal in the upper atmosphere so early in the climate record. 'It was surprising, really surprising to me the answer that we could have identified with high confidence a human-caused stratospheric cooling signal within 25 years of the start of monitoring, if we had back then in 1860 the measuring capability that we have today,' Santer, of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, said. The signal of climate change was detectable in the 19th-century atmosphere after just a 10 parts per million increase in carbon dioxide concentrations in the 40 years between 1860 and 1899. For comparison, planet-warming carbon dioxide levels skyrocketed by about 50 parts per million between 2000 and 2025, Santer said. Overall, carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere have increased by about 140 parts per million since the initially detectible point the scientists pinpointed. 'The results show it would have been detectable very quickly,' said Gabi Hegerl of the University of Edinburgh, who was not involved with the new paper. 'This highlights the strong influence that greenhouse gas increases have on the upper atmosphere compared to the variability there.' Andrea Steiner, a climate scientist at the Wegener Center for Climate and Global Change at the University of Graz in Austria, told CNN the study shows human-caused climate change can be detected earlier in the atmosphere than at the surface. 'This confirms that temperature change signals of the atmosphere are effective not only for detection, but also as early indicators of the success of climate mitigation efforts,' she said. Steiner was not involved in the new study. Both Santer and Solomon emphasized the results show the importance of continuing to closely monitor the upper atmosphere. That message comes at a time of steep scientific budget cuts, when crucial climate satellites and research programs are being targeted. This is particularly the case in the NOAA, NASA and Department of Energy budget proposals, Santer noted. The NOAA budget proposal, for example, would eliminate the air and oceans agency's research division, which includes carbon dioxide monitoring functions. In addition, the Trump administration's NASA budget proposal would cut some climate-relevant satellite missions, while stripping future NOAA satellites of climate science sensors. 'I do think it's important for non-scientists to know what's at stake here. That when we lose the capability to measure and monitor how our world is changing, it makes us all less safe,' Santer said.
Gizmodo
28-05-2025
- Climate
- Gizmodo
Cataclysmic 1831 Eruption Traced to Quadruple Volcano on Abandoned Soviet Island
This Cold War outpost concealed more than submarines—it hosted a devastating eruption that cooled the planet nearly 200 years ago. Scientists have finally solved a 200-year-old climatological mystery—and the answer was hiding out on a forgotten island. Late last year, a team of researchers revealed that a massive 1831 eruption from Zavaritski volcano, part of the remote Simushir Island chain, triggered global cooling in the Northern Hemisphere. A newly released satellite image shows these peaks—Milna, Zavaritski, Prevo, and Uratman—lined up end-to-end in a near-perfect row, forming one of the most geologically dramatic landforms in the Kuril Islands, a disputed chain between Russia and Japan. Simushir is part of the volatile Ring of Fire, where Earth's crust grinds and ruptures along tectonic plate boundaries. The 5-mile-long (8-kilometer) island features volcanic peaks visible from space. But one of them, it turns out, made an outsized and surprisingly recent impact on the world's climate. The team published its research describing the findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. In 1831, the Northern Hemisphere cooled by nearly 2 degrees Fahrenheit (nearly 1.1 degrees Celsius), throwing the climate into disarray and painting skies strange hues. Scientists long suspected a massive volcanic eruption was to blame, but its source remained unknown—until now. The recent study revealed that Zavaritski, Simushir's relatively modest 2,047-foot (624-meter) volcano was the culprit. Ash from the eruption was later found in polar ice cores, solving the nearly 200-year-old mystery of which volcano triggered the global cooling. 'The moment in the lab when we analysed the two ashes together, one from the volcano and one from the ice core, was a genuine eureka moment. I couldn't believe the numbers were identical,' said volcanologist William Hutchison, a researcher at the University of St Andrews and lead author of the study, in a university release. 'After this, I spent a lot of time delving into the age and size of the eruption in Kuril records to truly convince myself that the match was real.' Though the true identity of the volcano is a surprise, it's not shocking. Simushir's remote location and the fact its use by the Soviets as a secret nuclear submarine base kept it shrouded in secrecy for decades. (The Soviets used one of the island's flooded volcanic craters to dock its vessels). According to LiveScience, the island's military use ended in 1994, and the island is now abandoned—its calderas, bays, and rusting Soviet infrastructure slowly being reclaimed by nature. Though none of Simushir's volcanoes have erupted since 1957, they still loom large—both literally and in historical memory. Milna, the tallest of the bunch at 5,050 feet (1,540 m), last erupted in 1914, and the volcano Zavaritski erupted in 1957. But others appear dormant; Uratman, the easternmost peak in the chain in the above image, may not have erupted for 12,000 years—hence it being a reliable harbor for Soviet subs. The satellite image showcases a unique spit of land, one with a remarkable history of human occupation and world-altering volcanology.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Massive West Coast earthquake will do far more than shake the ground, report warns
A nightmarish scenario for the Pacific Northwest has gotten a dramatic update. Researchers have long warned that a stretch of coast in Oregon and Washington state is capable of producing an incredibly powerful earthquake that could kill thousands, shattering critical bridges, destroying undersea communication cables and producing a tsunami. It's a disaster scenario that "could happen at any time," according to a 2013 analysis. A new report, published on April 28 by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, highlights one risk in particular: coastal ground that rapidly drops, causing nearly instantaneous flood risk. The phenomenon, called "sudden coastal subsidence," can happen within moments of a massive earthquake. In some areas, the ground could sink 6 feet, researchers warned. (A similar situation unfolded in the 1964 earthquake in Alaska, a previous report published by the U.S. Geological Survey found.) Researchers painted a grim picture of what could happen in the Pacific Nortwest: "Along the Washington, Oregon, and northern California coasts, the next great Cascadia subduction zone earthquake could cause up to 2 m of sudden coastal subsidence, dramatically raising sea level, expanding floodplains, and increasing the flood risk to local communities." The report highlights how, over time, climate change will increase risk for such earthquake-induced flooding. But for those used to the constant looming threat of a major earthquake, the relatively low probability of such a disastrous scenario may be a small comfort: the study says there's a 15% probability of such an earthquake in the next 50 years. (Meanwhile, disastrous earthquakes in California are more likely, USGS estimates.) Huge earthquakes have long been an existential crisis for millions along the West Coast, as documented in a 2022 USA TODAY report. But experts said there are real things people can do to help them prepare for a major disaster. To start, you'll at least want a flashlight and a way to charge your phone. And you should be prepared to have your access to electricity or water cut off for days or weeks. Here's a few practical tips: When trying to use your phone, text – don't call. In a disaster, text messages are more reliable and strain cell networks less. To power your phone, you can cheaply buy a combination weather radio, flashlight and hand-crank charger to keep your cell running even without power for days. A cash reserve is good to have, seismologist Lucy Jones previously said. You'll want to be able to buy things, even if your credit card doesn't work for a time. Simple things like securing bookshelves can save lives. Downloading an early warning app can give you precious moments to protect yourself in the event of a big quake. Buying earthquake insurance can protect homeowners. And taking part in a yearly drill can help remind you about other easy steps you can take to prepare. But perhaps the most important tip from experts: Get to know your neighbors now. It's not just a nice idea – in the event of an emergency, strong community ties can be a literal lifeline. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Pacific Northwest earthquake could bring dramatic flooding: Report
